Tuesday 31 May 2011

The Tunnel-2011



Starring-Bel Delia(Natasha),Andy Roderedo(Peter),Steve Davis(Steve),Luke Arnold(Tangles)
Directed by-Carlo Ledesma.

Well where can i start,lets see,another faux par documentary,found footage,shaky cam,based on true events but actually for once this kind of works!
It's the story of a series of underground tunnels in the Australian city of Sydney,There is a water shortage and plans by the government to use the lakes that lay beneath the tunnels to help out,but there is a problem.
This is where we see the first interview with the journalist Natasha about  a video she has seen on you tube where some kids are graffitying near the tunnels when something very strange is happening,She senses a government cover up having read about the homeless using the tunnel's as a place to live,as this has happened in several countries before she wants to investigate to help the homeless from at least having somewhere to stay and not all being thrown out and having to live or die on the streets.
But is there something else or someone else living down there?
This is where they start to make their documentary and interview a homeless guy in view to what it's like down there,at first he is talking fine and everything is going well then they ask him a question which send hims loopy,goes off his head,not in a mad angry way just in the way he completely looses his mind.
So that's it now for Natasha she really has the bit  between her teeth and wants to get down there as soon as possible.
She convinces the rest of her news crew,Peter,Steve and sound recordists Tangles to go,Now you have to have a permit to enter the tunnels which for some reason she could not get or was not allowed to get,so she knows a guy called John that can sort this out and tells the rest of the crew that it's all sorted and it's time to go.
On arrival at the station the are confronted by a guard who asks for the permit and when they don't have one refuses to let them in,so she tells him John said its OK to let them in but he does not believe them and tells them to go away,she tries to have a whip round of everyone who is there to bribe the security guard with money but he is having non of it.So they turn and walk away but one of the crew has an old map of the tunnels and guess what......manages to find an alternative way in!
So the film starts,Now i do have to say the setting for this i.e. dark tunnels is very atmospheric indeed,genuinely creepy in fact,also a good thing about it until the end is that its the camera man filming it on quite a steady cam so as i said it doesn't do super annoying shaky cam until the last segment of the film.
So,We are inside the tunnels and Natasha and the crew are looking for evidence of people living down there when the stumble upon a room that is obviously inhabited deep down into the tunnel,in fact she does say after an hour of searching they have found evidence of people living down their,so the carry on with there search of the creepy tunnels when the find a huge bell and it's explained that the tunnel were used during WW2 as training and shelter facilities and this bell when rang was a warning of impeding attack.
So Natasha for the footage says she is going to strike the bell and asks the sound man Tangles to record which he does but it's so loud that his recording levels are way too high,he says He record it in the adjacent room so its not so harsh on his levels,she bangs the bell and as it fades we here a huge scream form the room where Tangles has gone into so they rush in and he's gone.


So you get then basic idea now right?The go on the hunt for Tangles but to no avail until the stumble upon a room that's splattered in blood and find his torch,Natasha leaves her nigh vision camera on the floor outside the room whilst the others film in the blood soaked room,when the come out the camera has been moved down the corridor,they look at it and they have all been filmed whilst in the room in addition there is a one framed shot of the face of something known only in the films credits as The Stalker.
I will let you decide from this point on whether it's the kind of film you'd like to see or not but i would say it certainly has atmosphere and is above par from a ton of these films made nowadays,it the first feature film from director Carlo Ledesma and it's easy to see that he is a horror fan,with influences from everything from Death line(Raw meat) to the great Neil Marshall film The Descent,By the way check out Carlos on IMDB he only looks about 10!
Also as a bonus this film has been released online as a free legal down loadable torrent!
So if you have a rainy day or are looking for something 90mins long you could do a lot worse than this.
6/10 Jonny T. 

Monday 30 May 2011

IP Man-2008 Donnie Yen


IP man from 2008 is probably the best film i have seen this year and i've seen a few, a friend of mine gave it me a couple of years back and said "you have to watch this it is amazing"now,not to be disrespectful to my friend(you know who you are)but i see him about once every 3 months and we always swap a ton of films and boy he does me some crap movies,but he's great, hence the fact that this has sat there for soooo long.

Losely based upon the legend Bruce Lee's Mentor,IP Man is the story of his life starting in 1930's China and his development of the classic Kung-fu style Wing Chun.
The film opens up with a small Chinese town where there are many Kung Fu schools teaching many different styles when a gang comes to town to challenge the leaders of each school,The leader of the gang proceeds to go through each school and kick the shit out of all of the masters then is asking where the so called IP Man lives as he wants to finish him off,big mistake.


We then see IP Man at home with his wife and son in a it has to be said quite a large nice house,the gang leader comes to the house to challenge him and IP Man and his wife agree as long as his wife says you don't break anything,The fight scene is pretty incredible to say the least but as the film progresses you get to learn that this is only a few of many many incredible moments.
IP Man is played by Donnie Yen who if this is the first time you have seen him in anything you MUST check him out in such classics as Iron Monkey and his incredible breathtaking pole fight scene with Jet Li in Once upon a time in China 2,Donnie Yen plays this role to perfection,polite,funny,mean when he has to be and his fighting skills to say he ain't no spring chicken are mind blowing.


The story takes a turn for the worse when Japan invade China during WWII and basically enslaved the whole of the population,We then get to see the evil Japanese commander that has taken over the town and house where IP Man lived,IP Man as many other families are having nothing left,not even food and is forced to get a job in the Cole mine where the Japanese ask the Chinese to volunteer to fight the Japanese with view to winning a bag of rice and as everyone is starving they are taken daily,IP Man's friend is taken away and IP Man later finds out that he has been killed,outraged he volunteers to go as previously he has abstained,when he arrives the Japanese if he wants to fight 3 men and he Cooley replies "No,i'll fight 10"the fight scene that follows has to be seen to be believed,its fast and very very brutal ending with IP Man's trade mark super quick double punch to the face several times.


If i say much more i will spoil it and i really don't want to as i feel that everyone needs to see this,so if you do get to see it let me know what you think and i can guarantee 1000% that when the film ends and for many days after you will be walking around double punching the air!
All in all another fantastic Asian flick and as i said this is the best film i have seen this year so far along with more great Asian films such as I Saw the Devil,Confessions and Slice,Long may Asia carry on making films like this and put Hollywood to shame.
9/10 Jonny T.





Thursday 26 May 2011

L.A.NOIRE-Review by Gavin Jennings.



L.A. Noire (2011)


Okay, for those of you wondering why I am writing about a video game on a cult film blog it’s because Rock star games latest offering is as much a movie as it is a game. Sure the term ‘interactive movie’ has been thrown around for ages but never before has technology really made it possible to allow the two platforms to merge together properly. Don’t get me wrong, we are still a long way from starring in our own epic blockbusters but this game certainly takes a few steps in the right direction.

In L.A. Noire players take control of new recruit Cole Phelps, a war hero with ambition hoping to rise through the ranks of the L.A.P.D in circa 1947 Los Angeles. As the title suggests this is pure homage to film noir but is less Maltese Falcon and more L.A. Confidential. As you would expect it is at times violent and dark but it is probably best described as different. Gamers expecting a similar experience to Grand theft auto might be surprised by Rock stars change of direction.



The city of Los Angeles has been beautifully re-created and is a joy to explore from behind the wheel of your Buick squad car. Everything looks suitably authentic from the Cola billboards to the sparks from the tram wires overhead. Period music plays in the background and is one of the best game soundtracks that I have heard in ages. The vehicles handle like you would expect them to, heavy and somewhat unresponsive. Speed around corners and the suspension wheezes under the pressure whilst the brakes squeak the car to an eventual halt. The roads are filled with these beautiful post-war gas guzzling behemoths and the general public go about their day to day lives around you. From a technical point of view everything is pretty solid with minor flaws only occurring on rare occasions. The real star here though is the games pioneering ‘motion-scan’ technology. An entire cast of quality actors has had their facial features and actions scanned and mapped out to replicate almost photo realistic character models. Throughout the story every subtle nod of the head or nervous blink is noticeable and since the games fundamental mechanics rely on it I am happy to say that Rock star have yet again set another bench mark that other developers will struggle to follow. As you would expect from a detective story a lot of the game play involves interrogating witnesses and suspects. This is where the motion-scan becomes important as Cole has to rely on your powers of intuition to make the right decisions. Fail to pick up on the characters eyes twitching whenever they lie and you will miss vital information. Go in too hard and they will clam up completely. In an early mission I had to talk to a witness about a shooting. On my first attempt I was too rough with my accusations and found myself driving across town following up another lead. Playing through the scene again I altered my approach and got the arrest quicker. These lengthy scenes are what give L.A. Noire its cinematic edge and help merge game and film as one. It fairly basic and at times drawn out but it’s an original approach that generally works quite well. I did find that more often than not I was relying on luck rather than perception and sadly you can’t adjust the outcome of the story with your decision making either. Whatever option you choose the suspect will only be arrested if the pre-determined story allows it.



Another aspect of playing a detective is your skills at observing a crime scene. Right through ‘Noire Cole will have to survey the landscape and find evidence. Being the forties forensic science is still in its infancy so you have to do it the hard way. The game requires you to find the ‘rumble point’ on the controller when Cole is positioned over a point of interest. In most cases this might only turn out to be a beer can or cigarette packet but finding key evidence is vital for convicting a prime suspect. You will also find newspapers that will provide important character back stories. The system is simple and works well. I found a real sense of achievement and genuine intrigue when building a case against a felon and missing an important item had an impact on the questions I could ask during interviews.

Aside from scouring crime scenes and interrogations Grand theft auto fans will know exactly what to expect from getting around. The city is free to roam if you choose to deviate from the main story. Famous L.A. locations can be discovered as well as hidden vehicles. There are also a number of side missions that are activated randomly via the radio dispatcher. There is something very cool about flaring up the sirens and tearing across crowded intersections on the way to an emergency. It’s just a shame that there isn’t more variety in these sub plots. After the first five or so and you will know exactly what to expect for the remainder of the game. Of course being a cop also means you can’t go on a rampage shooting pedestrians willy nilly. In fact you can’t even draw your fire arm unless you are threatened by a criminal. Also, the games controls are overly simplified which I found a little disappointing. You don’t have a jump or action button and most of the characters movements can be achieved by simply pointing Cole at the obstacle you need to ascend. All of this makes the game feel a lot more linear than is usual for a Rock star game. This might not bode well with some players considering that over the year’s games have become much more open allowing the gamer to shape their own experience. Given the quality of their previous efforts I suspect that Rock star have introduced these limits deliberately. Maybe they felt the game needed a more defined narrative to compliment the film noir aspect or maybe they were just reaching the boundaries of current technology?



So is L.A. Noire a successful blend of classic cinematic story telling and cutting edge gaming? Well I think that Rock star have achieved a fantastic land mark in the way we will play games in the future. Whilst its reserved pace and original approach might not appeal to everyone it is never the less an exciting view of what is to come. Some of what we see on offer has been done before with more flare and panache but it’s the interactive elements and improvements in motion technology that are the most notable. I suspect that in the near future we will see download packs that will expand the package even further but I doubt we will see fully interactive entertainment in our living rooms just yet.

Highly Recommended!

8/10

Wednesday 25 May 2011

Battle Los Angeles-Review


Boom,Bang,whoosh,kapow!
American VS Alien invasion,Fuck yeah!
Loads of shaky came,sentimental and CGI heavy,Call of duty vs aliens on film,That's what i expected to see from everything i had read about it,so here are my thoughts...............

Well yet another film does the USA army an injustice with all the gung ho'ness we have come to expect,
Not being all political as I'm not but there was so much macho bullshit in this it was laughable!
Starts with a flyover over the devastation and TV reports of meteorite's hitting many cities all over the world,then we hear that New York has been lost and loads more US cities but we must not lose Los Angeles,OK bring it on.
Film skips back 24hrs and we get to see many of the marines that are going to be involved in the fight for the earths survival,These people include a Sergeant just about to retire, a soldier with a pregnant wife, another soldier who just got back from Afghanistan and has shell shock and another who's bro was killed on duty and he's going to win it for him,YAWN!!
So you get the basic every cliche under the sun plot line right?


Well i say basic and that's the films trouble,The marines get sent into LA and have 24 hours to rescue survivors before the air force go in and bomb the hell out of those pesky aliens,I as I'm sure you have have seen this story/scenario now a million and one times and to be honest this offers nothing new whatsoever.
The mainstay of the film is just ground skirmishes with the aliens on the hunt for survivors,they do eventually come across a guy with his Little boy and some others and action scene after action scene later you can still guess whats coming,oh on the subject of the little boy,his dad(spoiler)gets killed by a pesky alien and so he stands there crying and the biiiiiig dimpled chin hero marine says to the young fella "Don't be ashamed to cry,but don't quit,marines never quit!"and he gets the crying boy to repeat it!!!OK sir "marines don't quit"what the fuck????????????
They then in the foray of aliens blowing up basically anything that breaths makes a noise or farts they find an abandoned bus and decide to hot wire it and go for it, a huge big red bus,jeeeeeez!!!!!!
Anyway I'm about done with this review,needless to say that the last 20 minutes or so are just like watching resistance fall of man or call of duty,the director should go write video games instead,
Pants! 4/10
Jonny T.



Tuesday 24 May 2011

Tucker and Dale VS Evil


So Tucker and Dale VS Evil,it could be seen as a metaphor for the simple country life of said Tucker and Dale VS the Evil that invades there peaceful backwater lifestyle in the form of annoying materialistic rich kids from the big city with no real understanding for values and the hard work ethic but to be honest i don't care,it was great!
So very refreshing to see a horror comedy that actually works for a change,The story starts with a van load of rich kids on there way to a vacation when the realise half way there and deep into Redneck country that they have forgotten their beer,noooooooo!!
So they pull into a local roadside shop to purchase beer,This is where we see the local rednecks including Tucker and Dale,this is where we get to see for the 1st time the view from Tucker and Dale's side,Dale sees one of the Blondie students and falls immediately in love but is to shy to say anything until tucker say"go say hello"which he does but goes over nervously laughing holding a scythe!


We then see what the rich kids would see,an evil big bearded redneck hell bent on slaughtering them!
This is where the film is very clever in us seeing Tucker and Dale heading out to their new vacation home and the kids seeing them as Evil rednecks,a thing we have all seen many a time in a million and one backwater slasher flicks.
The comes to full realisation for the kids when Tucker and Dale are out on an innocent night fishing trip and the kids decide to go skinny dipping,Then we see the girl that Dale really likes climbing down a rock to enter the water when she spots them both in the boat and thinks they are spying on them resulting in her screaming and falling in,Dale See's this and when she doesn't resurface he dives in saves her life and drags her unconscious body out the water and on to the boat and of course one her friends sees this and screams that she's been kidnapped!!


We then get to see the next morning where she wakes up in a grotty cabin and Dale brings her breakfast and she also at first thinks she has been kidnapped and screams,Dale says sorry in a panic and swaps her waffles for egg and bacon then offers her a game of trivial pursuit,she's safe,but her friends don't know that,so from here on in we get the kids trying to rescue her and Tucker and Dale for the love of god cannot do a thing right,I won't say anymore about any of the situations that arise suffice to say that it has every cliche you could imaging,the local sherrif,swinging chainsaws,twists in the plot and oh did i mention some very good gore scenes.
So in summing up it's a definate thumbs up from me Jonny T,Don't expect to much but enjoy the ride,
yeeeeehaaaaaaaawwwwwwwww!!!!
7/10
Jonny T.

  

Monday 23 May 2011

Monsters-Review by Jonny T.



Hello all,
Well i finally got to see Monsters about  year after i 1st read about it and heard about it from my good friend Misfitboy.

Here's the Synopsis:-

Six years ago NASA discovered the possibility of alien life within our solar system. A probe was launched to collect samples, but crashed upon re-entry over Central America. Soon after, new life form began to appear and half of Mexico was quarantined as an INFECTED ZONE. Today, the American and Mexican military still struggle to contain "the creatures"...... Our story begins when a US journalist agrees to escort a shaken tourist through the infected zone in Mexico to the safety of the US border.

The basic story revolves around the 2 main characters Samantha and Andrew,Samantha is stuck way out in Mexico and her very rich father who runs a magazine has a photographer Andrew in the area where she is stuck and sends him out to find her and bring her home safely.
As the synopsis says Mexico has basically been section off as an infected zone where a huge alien invasion of huge octopus like creatures have invaded and inhabited,So there is a news story on the TV of a monster attack on the city where Samantha is based and Andrew is set to bring her home safely,He manages to track her down to a local hospital and informs her of the situation and the task he has been given.
From here on in the start the trek across Mexico very close to the infected zone to find the final ferry back to the USA.



I won't go into great detail off every situation they get into but sufficed to say there are a few,now given the title Monsters you would expect a massive rampage of 600ft beasts but no,you seen the monsters briefly at the start then on TV reports,this builds the story up very nicely as more of a character based/driven scenario which to be honest was quite refreshing to see.
I was speaking to my good friend Jonny Nova about this and he basically told me that he'd looked into it and the budget was practically zero and a lot of the Mexican people you see along the way are just people the crew met as they drove across Mexico.Also the lighting and  monster effects were done on latest state of the art PC software,so all in all this bodes well for indie filmmakers to be able to put in such believable FX for a zero budget.
On summing up would i watch it again?Probably not but it's worth a viewing at least if not to see what kind of thing be achieved with a very low budget.
6/10
Jonny T.

Wednesday 18 May 2011

Megan is missing-Review by Jonny T.


So apparently Megan is missing?(Contains spoilers)
I had not seen or heard anything about this apart from seeing a brief line on a website saying it was "sick", Now as with all us horror fans when you see that word you've got to admit it does make you quietly curious, i mean how many of us heard how rough A Serbian Film was but we still watched it right?
So onto Megan is missing.
It's you basic story of 2 Teenagers Megan(14), The popular high school party girl and her Nerdy friend Amy(14) who have regular chats through the Internet at night talking about boys and the such like, The problem i have with this is that its one of those "All made from actual video clips,CCTV footage,news stories and based on true events"blah blah blah,seen it a thousand times before and to be honest the acting and news reports are at times laughable,especially the news reports.
So Megan and Amy chat away as the film is padded out with a ton of pointless chats,Megan is invited to a party by the local king of parties and accepts to go only if her best friend Amy can go,The so called king of parties is not to keen on the party pooper Amy going and agrees to let Megan and Amy come as long as Megan gives him a blow job,yes folks this is the level!
So they go to the party which is shown from various camcorder clips and phone footage,This sequence seemed to go on for ages,with everyone getting more and more drunk,loud grunge music playing that really did get on my nerves, Amy goes looking for Megan as Amy is not feeling to well and surprise she goes into a bedroom and Megan is giving a blow job,Yawn!
So Amy carries on just wondering around and some comes up to her grabs her arse and asks if she wants to get sexy and offers her some drugs she refuses so he punches her and no one around does a thing!
As i said my problem with this found footage genre is that with films lie this why would anyone be following her around all night? The most unpopular girl in school, it's lame film making.
The party footage culminates with two girls who are the token school lesbians being coaxed into have a drunken kiss that results in them vomiting into each others mouth,like i said,yawn!
So onto the next few days,again countless Internet chat between the girls and then one of Mandy's friends links her up with a cool looking guy called"Skater Dude" who's web cam is supposedly broken by his younger brother and also his dog chewed it,ha!There is only a picture of him,the stereotypical Blondie haired baseball capped skater/surfer,After a few conversations he says he's going to a party and would love to meet Megan there so arranges it and on her way phones Amy to tell her she's going but Amy doesn't get an invite which she is pretty upset about,Cut to the next morning where Amy awakens Megan via a video call at 8 am and asks how it went and Megan says the skater dude didn't show up,Or did he?


Later that day Megan gets an chat invite from said Skater dude and she asks angrily why he didn't turn up?
He explains that he was at the party and she looked very hot but was too shy to come and say hello,she asks what she was wearing and he describes in great detail everything she was wearing,He says he'll make it up to her by meeting later behind the diner,now i know some people are stupid but she'd never seen him,didn't recognise him from his photo at the party and agrees to meet him BEHIND a remote diner,come on!!!
Anyway the next day she has gone,disappeared,yep at last Megan is missing,Her concerned friend Amy is on the lookout for her but no one seems particularly bothered until the police find some CCTV footage from behind the diner that shows Megan walking and then grabbed and led away by a tall dark stranger,Now at this point i got really annoyed because,OK they show you the CCTV footage but then enhanced 50%,then 100%,then 200% the 500% i kid you not,talk about padding your film out!!!!!
It then switch's to another 2 unpublished photo's never before seen by the public,apparently the police were given a link to a S&M porn site by a guy that thought these photographs on there were too close to the edge and they show the missing Megan in 2 poses tied up half naked and covered in blood,Grim.
Amy then goes to the police and tells them of her date with the elusive skater dude which ensues in a media frenzy and when Amy gets home she has a chat request with skater boy who proceeds to tell her she's next and how fat and ugly and unpopular she is,she cuts his conversation off goes to a bridge where her and Megan used to go and underneath the bridge is where she keeps her favourite teddy bear(make any sense to you???)and whilst there the last shot on the video camera is of an arm grabbing her,tape finishes.
What we get next is said to be a totally unseen before and unedited whole 22 minutes of what police found on Amy's video camera,basically a dungeon where Amy is abused and raped in various horrible ways,i won't tell you what happens at the end incase you do decide to see it but i would say it's grim.
Now on summing up what can i say,here we have a film with 14 and 14 year old's portrayed on screen describing in graphic details blow jobs,incest sex and rape of a 14 year old,is the director trying to outdo a Serbian film and how many more times do we have to endure yet another found footage film which basically is yet another in a long line and now frankly quite boring "Tortue Porn"genre,come on filmmakers what ever happened to originality?
Avoid 3/10
.JONNY T.

Sunday 15 May 2011

True Grit-2010 Review by Whaid Latif




Welcome back good people,
I would like to welcome a new writer for Jonnys Cult films,The one and only Whaid Latif!
His 1st review is for the Cohen brothers excellent remake True Grit,
Many thanks Whaid,Take it away!

TRUE GRIT 2010


Having heard positive reviews about this film and not ever seeing the original I thought I’d give True Grit a go.


The Cohen brothers hold your attention for the duration of the movie, but once they have your attention do little to tap into your emotions or make you think, saying that it is entertaining with some amazing dialogue between the characters.

You do feel a bit short changed though with a rather abrupt ending. If Kevin Costner was at the helm he’d churn out a three hour epic, the thing is, there is enough depth to do this.

Jeff Bridges does a fine job of portraying a drunk (who still knows what’s going on around him) for the whole film. The girl (Hailee Steinfeld) steals the show, a future Natalie Portman me thinks. Matt Damon however fails to connect with his character and you find yourself saying several times “hey it’s Matt Damon .“



The movie as a whole is enjoyable, and the Cohen’s do successfully put you on a saddle and give you a ride into the Wild West, bringing the story to a whole new generation.

As I reach the end of my review I am trying to come up with a clever play on words to conclude on, I’ve already rejected True Grit, a true American classic, and True Grit, a gritty film. So here goes.... True Grit, a movie that shows that when the Cohen gets tough, the tough get Cohen.

Mr Whaid rating - 6.8/10

Saturday 14 May 2011

Attack the Block-Review by Gavin Jennings.



Attack the block (2011)


Aliens & Hoodies are two words rarely used together in the same sentence let alone used to describe a movie pitch. Well be prepared to hear them a lot more now as thoroughly British horror comedy ‘Attack the block’ has just been released in UK cinemas. The brain child of debut writer-director Joe Cornish, of the Adam & Joe show fame. The film centres on the exploits of teenage gang leader Moses and his crew of would-be muggers who attempt to stop an alien invasion on their council estate high rise. Oh, and one of England’s favourite zombie slayers, Nick Frost is along for the ride to!



Its Bonfire night and all across Britain the sky is filled with colourful explosions and light, perfect conditions for alien meteorites to land on Earth unnoticed. Moses and his gang are in the middle of violently mugging a young nurse when they are interrupted by an E.T landing on a nearby car. Sam, the nurse runs to a nearby Police station whilst the gang capture and kill the mysterious creature. They take the alien cadaver to local drug dealer Ron believing that his ‘weed room’ is the safest place to store it until they can sell it. What they don’t realise is that the aliens kin are about to storm their concrete fortress whilst the Police lock down any chance of escape.

It’s not surprising that Attack the block has been compared to the likes of Assault on Precinct 13 etc but it’s the film’s script and frankly wonderful young cast that manage to keep the movie feeling fresh. The dialogue is razor sharp and packed with humour. Scenes like where a gang member hides in a bin and attempts to call for help on just a pound of caller credit had me laughing in my seat and showed me the kind of enjoyment I hadn’t seen in horror comedies since the likes of Tremors or Dog soldiers and of course Shaun of the dead. The majority of the humour is from new comer Alex Esmail but it is John Boyega who is particularly good as Moses. His broody performance helps give the film a serious edge to the lampooning and his steady path towards redemption is believable throughout.



Attack the block isn’t a particularly violent or gory film. The visual effects are suitably basic and generally work well. It deserves its 15 (R) certificate but from what I can gather director Joe Cornish wanted it like this. He is a self confessed lover of 80’s cinema and sought to make the kind of almost family orientated thrillers that don’t seem to get made anymore. Think Gremlins or the Gate and even the Goonies and maybe you can understand where I am coming from. That being said A.T.B is a little morally questionable given today’s problems with knife culture and gangs. I’m not so sure it’s politically correct to perceive chavvy hoodlums as have ago heroes but given the fun I had watching this I can accept it.

In closing I highly recommend Attack the block. It’s fresh & edgy approach helps to disguise its lack of originality and minor plot flaws. Full credit goes to all the young actors that carry the film and Joe Cornish for doing a fantastic job as director. He is a talent to look out for in the future. The soundtrack is also superb and the almost psychedelic electronica fits the action perfectly. There are minor issues but you will be having too much fun to care. The biggest problem this film has is whether or not American audiences will be able to understand the language. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if this film is released in US theatres with subtitles.

8/10 Gavin Jennings.

Wednesday 11 May 2011

Jonny's Cult films podcast-Mad scientists!!


That's me in my"Human Centipede" t-shirt from the great Darkbunnytees brought especially for this show!

Yes yes yes,it's been a while but we are back!I cant start explain how busy we have been and why it has taken so long to get this episode out and to be honest i really don't know why!
But good people,a big thanks for your patience and it will be rewarded in this episode by not 1 but 2,yep,2 competitions!The 1st contest is a massive package from the great director of The Italian Zombie Movie Thomas Berdinski including a T-shirt,Badges,Flyer's and last but not least a signed DVD from the cast and crew and the great man Thomas Himself!!Now,If you haven't checked out his stuff yet you should do know!!!

The 2nd Prize is from our special guest on this episode and to be honest the way it went he will now be a regular if  we didn't scare the shit out of him the one and only Gavin Jennings,He has given for a prize a brilliant head bobbler of Dr Octopus off of that there Spiderman,it's great!

To be in with a chance of winning just listen to the show and email the answers to jonnyscultfilms@gmail.com
Competition ends on May 31st!

So this podcast is Dedicated to the great and wacky world of Mad Scientists.

The Italian zombie movie prize pic's!




The Dr Octopus Bobbler from Gavin!